"Not really," returned the voice, also female though much older, from the phone.

Then, a few seconds later, his voice had returned to normal.

But soon the voices returned, and she went back to work.

Then the voice from the speaker returned, one last time.

Mother's true voice had returned, though the screen remained dark.

With the next words her voice returned to its normal tone.

She waited until the male voice on the other end returned.

When her voice returned, it was soft and a bit curious.

"He has been in bed this hour," returned the voice.

There was another silence, much longer this time, before the voice returned.